How about we be a little pragmatic and patient with the goalie situation.

First of all, consider the obvious, that we're only 3 games into the season, Roberto is a notorious slow starter who has been getting even less work than usual since camp, and the goal is to get Schneider more starts early in the year.

Also keep in mind that Luonogo and Schneider are already under the microscope to start the year.

Oh, and the final thing, unless we'll have a fast one pulled on us, Schneider will start tonight in Detroit.

With all that in mind, pulling Luongo last night wouldn't have been a smart move. Yes we want to win every regular season game, but it's not the time of year to win at all costs. You have to think of the long term ramifications of how you handle your goalies and not start an early precedent of pulling goalies after a couple weak goals this early in the year.

Unless either Corey or Roberto get completely aired out, it's smarter to let them play full games to work out their issues and get a better feel for the game. When the Canucks decided to only dress their vets 2 games, it was reasonable to expect them to start rather slowly with some rusty individual and team performances. So far that's what we're seeing. If this carries on for an extended period of time, then you start yanking the chain, but at this point, the goalies and the team will have to work through this.

LotusBlossom wrote:Luongo said it best last night. He needs to make that game saver save. Period, end of story.

He publicly recognized it instead of giving the "It is what it is" type of interview. He took responsibility. That's a good start.

Now it's all about applied knowledge... we'll know soon enough.

He has held himself accountable after both of his losses so far this season, which is a pleasant surprise. I would guess that the Nucks had a chat with Luongo about how he handles the media. A little more accountability and a little less "pump my tires", "I would've stopped that", etc. will go a long way in fixing the tumultuous relationship between Lu and the fans.....well that and stopping the puck once in a while

coco_canuck wrote:First of all, consider the obvious, that we're only 3 games into the season, Roberto is a notorious slow starter who has been getting even less work than usual since camp, and the goal is to get Schneider more starts early in the year.

Also keep in mind that Luonogo and Schneider are already under the microscope to start the year.

Oh, and the final thing, unless we'll have a fast one pulled on us, Schneider will start tonight in Detroit.

With all that in mind, pulling Luongo last night wouldn't have been a smart move. Yes we want to win every regular season game, but it's not the time of year to win at all costs. You have to think of the long term ramifications of how you handle your goalies and not start an early precedent of pulling goalies after a couple weak goals this early in the year.

Good points. Of course I made my statement while looking into the rear-view mirror. I'm not alone in doing that, but eventually we have to put it behind us.

Not Luo's best game but he did not get a lot of support from his mates. They did not clear the front nearly as well as they did for Cory the previous game.

As Coco emphasized we are early in the season and the vets did not play much in the preseason so some rust has to be expected. Usually in that circumstance the own zone D is what suffers the most and that is evident.

As for positives vs expectations, Cody has certainly been that. Made some heady passes, doesn't panic and has been defensively responsible. He has certainly stabilzed the 2nd unit PP at least to this point. He has some trouble with board battles but wins possession often with his quick stick. As he adds strength he get better.

I really liked the play on Sammy's PP goal, with all 6 players rotating counterclockwise. This movement makes it very difficult for the PK to defend against. Hopefully they win continue to use this or a variation of it.

This was a very winable game for the Canucks, had they had some cohesion in the D zone and been able to kill penalties. The PK really misses Ryan Kesler and Raymond. With him and Burrows together other teams have to conscious of their speed and transition to offense. With Manny, Lappy et al not so much.

"It is better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to open one's mouth and remove all doubt "

Over the first 3 games Hodgson has either been our 4th or 5th best forward depending on who you ask.

If he maintains that level of play through the rest of the games leading up to Keslers return then the Canucks will be forced to make one of the more dificult and interesting decisions we have seen in a while.

This team was essentially built around a 2-way kesler led second line, and an ultra defensive and hard nosed 3rd line.

Codys defensive game is fine but he really doesn't fit into the third group and given we have 2 of the best players in the league locking down the top2 center spots there is obviously no room there.

The easy thing to do would be to send him down to the AHL and just use him as an injury reserv, but if things remain the same in terms of his play that would seem incredibly unfair.

The other options would include bumping Malholtra down or to the wing and going with more of a 2-way group on the 3rd line, and of course moving Cody to the wing and playing him with Kesler.

Long term I think a move to the wing is where he is headed but in the short term there is a risk of setting the player back.

Cody is playing with a lot of confidence right now and is starting to look very comfortable on the NHL ice. Pushing him out of his comfort zone could be counter productive to the players development.

Then again perhaps having an exceptional line mate like Kesler would more then make up for the position change.

Potatoe1 wrote:Cody is playing with a lot of confidence right now and is starting to look very comfortable on the NHL ice. Pushing him out of his comfort zone could be counter productive to the players development.

Then again perhaps having an exceptional line mate like Kesler would more then make up for the position change.

Yeah - I was thinking of 2008/09 where Kesler played on Sundin's wing... that didn't seem to hurt Kesler at all, in fact it seemed to accelerate his development into an emerging star.

Hodson has been one of our more effective players through three games. If he keeps this up until Kesler returns, no way do I see him being sent down.

Frankly, I would be surprised if playing on Kesler's wing hampers anybody's game. Hodgson has been strong on the puck, is creative, smart and has created a bunch of scoring changes. Most importantly he is working hard and wants to make the most out of this opportunity. He seems determined to stick this time. I do worry about how weak Hodgson is along the boards and how that may translate negatively to playing on the wing, but the kid has improved a ton and I don't see why he wouldn't be able to improve this part of his game as well.

Potatoe1 wrote:Cody is playing with a lot of confidence right now and is starting to look very comfortable on the NHL ice. Pushing him out of his comfort zone could be counter productive to the players development.

Then again perhaps having an exceptional line mate like Kesler would more then make up for the position change.

Yeah - I was thinking of 2008/09 where Kesler played on Sundin's wing... that didn't seem to hurt Kesler at all, in fact it seemed to accelerate his development into an emerging star.

S_C

Big difference IMO.

Kesler already had a couple excellent 2-way seasons under his belt when he moved to Sundins wing. That move took an already very good player and moved him into a much more offensive role, which he obviously thrived in.

Cody is just barely starting his NHL career and looks to be right on the cusp of turning into a very good player.

For the most part young players coming in need to find a comfort zone and play with a lot of confidence for an extended period in order to really turn into a contestant pro. If Cody can maintain his current play for the next 30 or 40 games then he is far less likely to fall back.

If he gets 4 or 5 more games then is moved to the wing and finds the transition difficult, he could very easily end up back on the farm at some point next month.

herb wrote:Frankly, I would be surprised if playing on Kesler's wing hampers anybody's game. Hodgson has been strong on the puck, is creative, smart and has created a bunch of scoring changes. Most importantly he is working hard and wants to make the most out of this opportunity. He seems determined to stick this time.

Amazing how much better young players look when they get a little confidence.

Even in the preseason Hodgson still looked a bit undersized, a bit slow, and a bit weak on the puck. He was still fairly solid but he was by no means a lock for anything.

All of a sudden however his speed and size seem at least average and his strength on the puck seems to be a strength not a weakness. He now seems to be coming up with lose pucks all over the place and has the time and space to do something when he gets them.

Its bee a fairly major shift in performance in a very short period of time.

He could very easily fall off but it's hard not to be optimistic given what we have seen to this point..

I am also very impressed with Cody's game, but consistency is a common issue for players with his age and lack of experience; I don't know if he sees a demotion this season but I'll be astonished if he plays at or around this level all year - especially since I think if he plays at this level for an extended period the points will start coming in bunches.